Following up quickly from my last newsletter because I need your help with a deadline. On September 1st, my first app goes live on the Apple App Store, and if you preorder now, you can help us pop in the rankings. It is free to preorder, and the team would really appreciate clicking this link:

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/fdoo-menu-translator/id6776904228

Preorder

If you like the app, please also share it with your friends!

What is Fdoo?

Fdoo.app removes the friction of going to a restaurant where you can’t understand the menu. Be assured that what you’re eating meets your dietary requirements. It’s faster than using multiple apps to translate a menu.

The Team:

• Brent Allen Deverman - Project

• Luisa Haning Tyas - Product

• Teresa Kaena - Go to Market

• William Gozali - Development

• Ketut Agus Cahyadi Nanda - Design

Now we are ready to enter the RevenueCat Shipaton contest.

Appreciate the feedback along the way:

Thanks to Klemens Strasser for giving the suggestion to do preorders.

Apple Developer Academy @ BINUS mentors that helped guide us:

Utari Dyani Laksmi - Jacob Laird - Adhella Subalie - Izzar Dienhaque

Thanks to those who have given feedback we have many improvements on our roadmap with your suggestions:

Mohamed Samir - Dickson Leonard - Subhransu Behera - Bevan Webb - Ronan Berder - Dr. Dominik Dotzauer - Samantha Joice Lugay - Syauqi Auliya Muhammad - Rocío Lu - Darma Paramarta - Umar Muhdhor - Jason Marsellino - Nathan Tew - Nil Camprubí Vilademunt - Doni N. Pranama - Marleen Phangestu - Syed Israruddin - Yohana Beatrice Nainggolan - Virellia Zhen - Ruanth Chrisley Thyssen - Zara Sasongko - Beatrice Wambui Mbugua - Jessica Gideon - Runi Cholid - Imelda Damayanti - Al Barra’ Nasser Attamimy and many more!

Dear Friends,

After I moved to Singapore to join my wife, I set out to adjust my career trajectory and get back to building instead of herding cats.

Over the last two years I’ve transitioned from:

• Hong Kong/Shenzhen (25 years) -> Singapore -> Bali

• Single -> Husband

• Project Manager -> AI Engineer on Apple Platforms

• Corporate -> Startups (again)

• Managing teams of 30 people -> Individual Contributor

• Building websites -> Building apps

If we haven’t talked in a while, I went from Software Engineer (ewatchfactory) -> Startup Founder -> Web Development Manager (CNN) -> Public Website Lead (HSBC) -> Senior Product Manager (DFS) -> Startup Exit -> Senior Project Manager (AIA) and lastly a successful 13TB Azure cloud migration.

For the last 6 months I’ve been building in Bali at the Apple Developer Academy on a journey to become a world-class Apple Developer.

Awesomesauce 🥫 is how I would describe the projects I’ve been part of, multiple projects from top teams that are Apple App Store worthy. Over the coming weeks I’ll be writing about them as I build in public.

Subscribe and stay tuned to this newsletter.

New Web Homepage

One of the first things I did with the Swift programming language was redesign my personal website & portfolio in Swift using a static site generator I forked. I still believe it is advantageous to have a central home on the Internet.

Keep up with my writings and my “now page” to see what I’m thinking and building:

https://deverman.org

P.S. I’m in Bali until mid-December. You definitely need a vacation, come and hangout together on the beach. 🏖️ Respond to this email to plan your vacation.

I'm thrilled to invite you to a compelling discussion in Hong Kong that promises to navigate the complex and transformative realms of Artificial Intelligence (AI). This special event is part of the "Hong Kong Spartans Spartans’ Spotlight Series," and it’s happening on November 15th at the Whale Club.

We have a dynamic panel lined up for you! I will be sharing the virtual stage with Janelleh Tang, a Digital Project Consultant from Rosewood Hotel Group. Steering our discussion is the accomplished Richard Lai from Engadget, who will be moderating the panel.

Event Highlights:

• 📅 Date: Wednesday, 15 November 2023 (register by Nov 10th)

• ⏰ Time: 7pm - 9:30pm

• 📍 Location: Whale Club, 1/F, Lyndhurst Building, 29 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central

You can secure your spot and join us for a night filled with insightful discussions by RSVPing for the event.

For more details, stay tuned to the Facebook event page.

Let's explore the captivating realms of AI together, unraveling its mysteries, potential, and the transformative impacts it holds across various sectors. Looking forward to engaging with you during this enlightening event!

Best, Brent Deverman

Daily updates on how to navigate the virus and economy in Southern China

As the two intertwined economies of Hong Kong and Shenzhen are ripped further apart by the coronavirus pandemic, I wanted to let you all know about the coronavirus live blog I launched 2 months ago. With Shenzhen on the mend and Hong Kong buckling down while the world spins, we have been gathering links for dealing with the crises including ways to pass time, business insights and links to analysis of the situation updated daily from a variety of sources inside and outside China.

View COVID-19 Live Blog

Survey for transformation of ShenzhenParty.com

As businesses get back to work in Shenzhen and the Greater Bay Area, my team is looking to adapt ShenzhenParty.com for the new normal. If you have been a user of the product in the past, please help give frank feedback. It would mean a lot to me if you contribute.

Start Survey

P.S. If you don’t have time to do the survey you can send feedback to the founder by replying to this email.

- Stay safe and healthy, Brent Deverman

After working one year at DFS Hong Kong as a Senior Ecommerce Product Manager, I am hiring an Assistant Product Manager, Digital & E-Commerce.

We are looking for someone with the potential to become a full fledged Product Owner as we scale up to build a billion USD digital ecommerce business in our 17 global markets. This is a great opportunity to take on parts of our backlog and work with Buisness and IT to drive huge digital gains. If you are interested or know someone please send a resume to brent@deverman.org. (The position is located in Hong Kong and you need to be able to speak Mandarin Chinese. Please read the full job description)

View Job Description

I’ll be sending personal updates from time to time, probably no more than once a month so I hope you will stay subscribed.

For more regular updates follow bdeverman on Instagram.

Sign up now so you don’t miss the first issue.

Subscribe now

In the mean time, tell your friends!